John Cusack

This article is about the actor. For other people named John Cusack, see John Cusack (disambiguation).

John Cusack
Cusack in 2014
Born	John Paul Cusack (1966-06-28) June 28, 1966 Evanston, Illinois, U.S.
Occupations	Actor producer screenwriter
Years active	1983–present
Father	Dick Cusack
Relatives	Ann Cusack (sister) Joan Cusack (sister)

John Paul Cusack (/ˈkjuːsæk/; born June 28, 1966) is an American actor. He began acting in films during the 1980s, starring in coming-of-age dramedies such as Sixteen Candles (1984), Better Off Dead (1985), The Sure Thing (1985), Stand by Me (1986), and Say Anything... (1989). In the 1990s, he then started appearing in independent films and had leading men roles in Bullets Over Broadway (1994), Con Air (1997), Grosse Pointe Blank (1997), Anastasia (1997), The Thin Red Line (1998), Being John Malkovich (1999), High Fidelity (2000), America's Sweethearts (2001), Max (2002), and Runaway Jury (2003).

Cusack has been nominated for several awards, including a Golden Globe for his role starring in High Fidelity. In 2012, he was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Cusack won the 2014 Canadian Screen Awards for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role for his performance in Maps to the Stars. He is a son of filmmaker Dick Cusack and the younger brother of actresses Joan and Ann Cusack.

Early life

Cusack was born in Evanston, Illinois into an Irish Catholic family. His parents are writer-actor-producer and documentary filmmaker Richard J. "Dick" Cusack (1925–2003), originally from New York City, and Ann Paula "Nancy" Cusack (née Carolan; 1929–2022), originally from Massachusetts, a former mathematics teacher and political activist. John's older sisters, Ann and Joan, are also actors. Cusack has two other siblings, Bill and Susie. The family moved from Manhattan, New York, to Illinois and were friends of activist Philip Berrigan. Cusack graduated from Evanston Township High School in 1984, where he met Jeremy Piven, and spent a year at New York University before dropping out, saying that he had "too much fire in his belly".

Career

1980s

Cusack began acting in films in the early 1980s. His first on screen appearances was in minor roles, Class (1983) and John Hughes directorial debut film Sixteen Candles (1984). On the set of Grandview, U.S.A. (1984), his co-star Jamie Lee Curtis gifted Cusack with his first car, a 1974 Chevrolet Impala, which she had named 'La Bamba'. 16-year-old Cusack made his breakthrough performance in Rob Reiner's teen comedy The Sure Thing (1985). It was a critical success, but has since become an underrated film.

He then took on the small-town teen dark comedy film Better Off Dead (1985). Cusack was initially embarrassed and disappointed by the film, describing it as the "worst thing he had ever seen" on his first watch. The film had a budget of $3 million and grossed $10.3 million at the box office, but the studio still considered it a failure. Cusack also worked with the director Savage Steve Holland on One Crazy Summer (1986).

Cusack then had a brief appearance in Rob Reiner's Stand by Me (1986) as the older brother of Gordie, a film based on Stephen King's The Body. On the film, co-star Kiefer Sutherland recalled, "John Cusack was on the film for at least a week. I admired what he was doing and thought he was an actor I wanted to emulate." In 1988, Cusack went on and starred in the Independent film Eight Men Out (1988), about Major League Baseball's Black Sox Scandal during the 1919 World Series. He also appeared in the cult comedy Tapeheads (1988), a film by executive producer Michael Nesmith.

In the late 1980s, Cusack starred in Cameron Crowe's directorial debut film, Say Anything... (1989). He starred opposite actress Ione Skye, playing the title character Lloyd Dobler who experiences a romance with Diane Court (Skye). Cusack was reluctant to do the film at first, but he gave his character dimension through referencing the English punk band The Clash, and The Replacements. In the film, Cusack became known for the infamous boombox scene, in which his character Lloyd stands near Diane's bedroom window, and wordlessly holds up a cassette player above his head, blasting Peter Gabriel's 1986 song "In Your Eyes". His character Lloyd Dobler had since inspired popular culture, such as the band Lloyd Dobler Effect, and Frank Iero's band Pencey Prep with their misspelled song "Lloyd Dobbler".

1990s

In the 1990s, Cusack played a con artist in Stephen Frears' 1990 neo-noir film The Grifters. He then appeared in a series of independent films such as True Colors (1991), and Money for Nothing (1993). In the Quentin Tarantino cult classic film, Pulp Fiction (1994), the role of Lance was originally written with Cusack in mind, however, the part went to Eric Stoltz.

Cusack in Grosse Pointe Blank (1997)

After establishing New Crime Productions, Cusack co-wrote the screenplay for and starred in George Armitage's crime film Grosse Pointe Blank (1997), in which he played an assassin who goes to his 10-year high school reunion to win back his high school sweetheart. Released in the same year, Cusack also starred in the Nicolas Cage film Con Air (1997) as the FBI agent Vince Larkin, and in Clint Eastwood's Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997). He also voiced Dimitri in the animated film Anastasia (1997).

In the critically acclaimed Spike Jonze's fantasy film Being John Malkovich (1999), with the script written by Charlie Kaufman, Cusack played a puppeteer who finds a portal leading into the mind of the eponymous actor, John Malkovich. The film was nominated for three Academy Awards, including Best Director (Jonze), Best Original Screenplay (Charlie Kaufman) and Best Supporting Actress (Catherine Keener).

2000s

Cusack was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his performance in High Fidelity (2000), based on Nick Hornby's novel about Rob, a record store owner, and the history of his failed relationships. In the early 2000s, Cusack appeared in a few romantic comedies such as America's Sweethearts (2001), Serendipity (2001), Must Love Dogs (2005), playing opposite lead actresses Julia Roberts, Kate Beckinsale, and Diane Lane.

Cusack starred in a series of thriller films such as Identity (2003), Runaway Jury (2003), The Contract (2006), and 1408 (2007), based on Stephen King's 1408. The film largely went unnoticed at the time of release, but is now considered an underrated horror film. He also appeared in the action comedies The Ice Harvest (2005), and War, Inc. (2008), as well as James C. Strouse directorial debut film Grace Is Gone (2007).

In 2009, Cusack starred as Jackson Curtis in Roland Emmerich's epic disaster film 2012 (2009), a struggling novelist who attempts to save his family during a global cataclysm. Throughout his career, Cusack tends to be typecast in the roles of writers, such as Martian Child (2007) and 1408 (2007).

2010s

Cusack as Edgar Allan Poe in The Raven (2012)

In the 2010s, Cusack starred in and produced the comedy film Hot Tub Time Machine (2010); he did not feature in the sequel, Hot Tub Time Machine 2 (2015), however. Both films were directed by Steve Pink.

In 2012, Cusack played Edgar Allan Poe in James McTeigue's biopic film The Raven (2012). On acting in a real life role, Cusack said, "You have to get yourself as close to insanity as you can, but yet, be able to not go insane." He referred to the source of Poe's letters and writing, and used it material for his role. Cusack then starred in another real life role as Richard Nixon in Lee Daniels' The Butler (2013). Lee: "I love working with John Cusack. He’s terrifying, he’s electrifying, and he inspires me to be a better director. He’s a fiery, intense presence on set. We never, ever rub up against each other but he fuels me."

In 2014, Cusack appeared in another biopic film Love & Mercy (2014), on Brian Wilson of The Beach Boys. He was cast in the role of older Brian Wilson, and worked closely with Wilson himself, during the making of the film. In the same year, Cusack also starred in David Cronenberg's Maps to the Stars (2014). He won a Canadian Screen Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Maps to the Stars (2014). This era was a new peak in his career, however, in 2014, Cusack infamously criticized Hollywood saying the mega-corporations have stepped in with 50-producer movies, franchises are king, and stars are used as leverage. He noted Hollywood is "a whorehouse and people go mad."

Later, Cusack starred in video on demand films, including The Factory (2012), The Numbers Station (2013), The Frozen Ground (2013), Grand Piano (2013), Drive Hard (2014), The Prince (2014), Reclaim (2014), Cell (2016), Arsenal (2017), Blood Money (2017), and Singularity (2017).

2020s–present

Cusack starred in his first TV series Utopia in 2020. In a 2020 interview with The Guardian, Cusack had admitted to the decline of his acting career. "In the last few years, I haven’t been able to get projects financed. That could be a function of getting older. Or it could be a function of being cold."

Political views

Cusack at Huffington Post Pre-Inaugural Party in January 2009

Cusack is anti-war, having tweeted, "Being anti-war — is pro-troops — pro-human". Between 2005 and 2009, Cusack wrote blogs for The Huffington Post, which included an interview with Naomi Klein. He voiced his opposition to the war in Iraq and Bush's administration, calling the government's worldview "depressing, corrupt, unlawful, and tragically absurd". He also appeared in a June 2008 MoveOn.org advertisement, where he said that George W. Bush and John McCain had the same governing priorities.

Cusack criticized the Obama administration for its drone policy in the Middle East and its support of the National Defense Authorization Act, and became one of the initial supporters of the Freedom of the Press Foundation in 2012. In June 2015, he stated in an interview with The Daily Beast that "when you talk about drones, the American Empire, the NSA, civil liberties, attacks on journalism and whistleblowers, [Obama] is as bad or worse than Bush". He later criticized the publication for misquoting him in order to make an interesting headline.

In 2015, Cusack, Daniel Ellsberg and Arundhati Roy met Edward Snowden, who had fled the US because of his leaks of classified information surrounding illegal population surveillance, at a Moscow hotel room. This meeting was converted into a book co-authored with Roy titled Things That Can and Cannot Be Said.

Cusack endorsed Senator Bernie Sanders in his 2016 and 2020 presidential bids. He is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America.

During May 2020, Cusack was recording a George Floyd protest in Chicago on social media when he was attacked by police with batons and later pepper-sprayed.

I would love to think about other things—poetry, love, anything else. But that’s just not the times we’re in. And, y’know, not all anger is just sort of somebody stuck in some rut in a basement. If you can’t be outraged on behalf of other people, or express anger at injustice, maybe that is its own rut. Sure, I might go too far sometimes. But I really just want to get across the message: that we’re sleepwalking into an incredibly dark possible future. Maybe being outspoken hurts your career… I’m just aware it helps me sleep better at night, knowing that I wasn’t passive during this time.

— John Cusack, The Guardian (October 4, 2020)

Israel–Palestine

For broader coverage of this topic, see Israeli–Palestinian conflict.

Cusack has been fiercely critical of Israel's military actions against Palestinians. He criticized Israel's killing of Palestinians in the 2014 Gaza War, retweeting for weeks articles supporting Gaza. Cusack signed an open letter in support of Lorde cancelling performances in Israel, which was in response to a request from the BDS movement. Following the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel and the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip, Cusack signed another open letter (Artists4Ceasefire) urging Joe Biden to "call for and facilitate a ceasefire without delay..." He also blocked and direct messaged pro-Israel and Zionist Twitter users insults, and assertions that Israel is conducting a genocide in Gaza.

In June 2019, Cusack tweeted out an image of a large fist with a blue Star of David crushing a small crowd of people next to a quote often misattributed to Voltaire: "To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize". In the tweet, Cusack added the words "Follow the money." He said that the tweet was meant to criticize Israel's policies against Palestinians but later apologized saying that "antisemitism has no place in any rational political dialogue" and deleted the tweet.

Since the Israel–Hamas war broke out in Gaza in October 2023, Cusack has been vocal about what he calls a genocide of Palestinians.

Personal life

Cusack trained in kickboxing under former world kickboxing champion Benny Urquidez for over 20 years. He began training under Urquidez in preparation for his role in Say Anything... and holds the rank of a level six black belt in Urquidez's Ukidokan Kickboxing system.

In March 2008, police arrested Emily Leatherman outside Cusack's Malibu, California, home for stalking him. On October 10, 2008, Leatherman pleaded no contest and received five years' probation and mandatory psychiatric counseling, and was ordered to stay away from Cusack, his home, and business for the next 10 years.

Filmography

Film

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1983	Class	Roscoe Maybaum
1984	Sixteen Candles	Bryce
	Grandview, U.S.A.	Johnny Maine
1985	The Sure Thing	Walter "Gib" Gibson
	Better Off Dead	Lane Myer
	The Journey of Natty Gann	Harry
1986	Stand by Me	Dennis "Denny" Lachance
	One Crazy Summer	Hoops McCann
1987	Hot Pursuit	Dan Bartlett
	Broadcast News	Angry Messenger
1988	Tapeheads	Ivan Alexeev
	Eight Men Out	Buck Weaver
1989	Say Anything...	Lloyd Dobler
	Fat Man and Little Boy	Michael Merriman
1990	The Grifters	Roy Dillon
1991	True Colors	Peter Burton
	Shadows and Fog	Student Jack
1992	Roadside Prophets	Caspar
	The Player	Himself	Cameo
	Map of the Human Heart	The Mapmaker
	Bob Roberts	Cutting Edge Host
1993	Money for Nothing	Joey Coyle
1994	Floundering	JC
	Bullets Over Broadway	David Shayne
	The Road to Wellville	Charles Ossining
1996	City Hall	Kevin Calhoun
1997	Grosse Pointe Blank	Martin Q. Blank	Also co-writer and producer
	Con Air	Vince Larkin
	Chicago Cab	Scary Man
	Anastasia	Dimitri	Voice role
	Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil	John Kelso
1998	This Is My Father	Eddie Sharp
	The Thin Red Line	Capt. Gaff
1999	Pushing Tin	Nick Falzone
	Cradle Will Rock	Nelson Rockefeller
	Being John Malkovich	Craig Schwartz
2000	High Fidelity	Rob Gordon	Also co-writer and producer
2001	America's Sweethearts	Eddie Thomas
	Serendipity	Jonathan Trager
2002	Max	Max Rothman	Also associate producer
	Adaptation	Himself	Uncredited cameo
2003	Identity	Edward "Ed" Dakota
	Runaway Jury	Nicholas Easter
2005	Must Love Dogs	Jake Anderson
	The Ice Harvest	Charlie Arglist
2006	The Contract	Ray Keene	Direct-to-video
2007	Grace Is Gone	Stanley Philipps	Also producer
	1408	Michael "Mike" Enslin
	Martian Child	David Gordon
2008	War, Inc.	Brand Hauser	Also co-writer and producer
	Igor	Igor	Voice role
2009	2012	Jackson Curtis
2010	Hot Tub Time Machine	Adam Yates	Also producer
	Shanghai	Paul Soames	Direct-to-video
2012	The Raven	Edgar Allan Poe
	The Paperboy	Hillary Van Wetter
	The Factory	Mike Fletcher	Direct-to-video
2013	The Numbers Station	Emerson Kent	Direct-to-video
	The Frozen Ground	Robert Hansen	Direct-to-video
	The Butler	Richard Nixon
	Grand Piano	Clem
	We Are Not Animals	Tony Lovecraft	Also co-writer and executive producer
	Adult World	Rat Billings
2014	The Bag Man	Jack	Direct-to-video
	Maps to the Stars	Stafford Weiss
	Drive Hard	Simon Keller	Direct-to-video
	The Prince	Sam	Direct-to-video
	Love & Mercy	Brian Wilson
	Reclaim	Benjamin	Direct-to-video
2015	Dragon Blade	Lucius
	Hot Tub Time Machine 2	Adam Yates	Uncredited cameo in unrated version
	Chi-Raq	Fr. Mike Corridan
2016	Boom Bust Boom	Self	Documentary
	Cell	Clayton Riddell	Also executive producer; direct-to-video
2017	Arsenal	Sal	Direct-to-video
	Blood Money	Miller	Direct-to-video
	Singularity	Elias van Dorne	Direct-to-video
2018	Distorted	Vernon Sarsfield
	River Runs Red	Horace	Direct-to-video
2019	Never Grow Old	Dutch Albert
2022	Pursuit	John Calloway	Direct-to-video
2024	Decoded	Liseiwicz

Television

Year	Title	Role	Notes
1996	Frasier	Greg	Voice role; Episode: "Our Father Whose Art Ain't Heaven"
1999	The Jack Bull	Myrl Redding	Television film; also executive producer
2014	Doll & Em	John	Episode: "Three"
2020	Utopia	Dr. Kevin Christie	8 episodes

Awards and nominations

Year	Association	Category	Nominated work	Result
1989	Chicago Film Critics Association	Most Promising Actor	Say Anything...	Won
1999	Independent Spirit Awards	Best Male Lead	Being John Malkovich	Nominated
	Online Film Critics Society	Best Ensemble		Nominated
	Screen Actors Guild	Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture		Nominated
2000	American Comedy Awards	Funniest Actor in a Motion Picture (Leading Role)	High Fidelity	Nominated
	BAFTA	Best Adapted Screenplay		Nominated
	Empire Awards	Best Actor		Nominated
	Golden Globe Awards	Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy		Nominated
	Teen Choice Awards	Choice Hissy Fit		Nominated
	University of Southern California	Scripter Award		Nominated
	Writers Guild of America	Best Adapted Screenplay		Nominated
2001	American Comedy Awards	Funniest Actor in a Motion Picture (Leading Role)		Nominated
2007	Saturn Awards	Best Actor	1408	Nominated
2009	Teen Choice Awards	Choice Movie Actor – Sci-Fi	2012	Nominated
2012	Village Voice Award	Best Supporting Actor	The Paperboy	Nominated
2013	Screen Actors Guild	Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture	The Butler	Nominated
2014	Canadian Screen Awards	Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role	Maps to the Stars	Won

Further reading

• Barnes, Henry (September 26, 2014). "John Cusack: 'Hollywood is a whorehouse and people go mad'". The Guardian. Accessed February 27, 2015.
• Robinson, Tasha (November 27, 2007). "John Cusack" (interview). The A.V. Club.

External links

• John Cusack at IMDb
• John Cusack at AllMovie